* Classification
provides scientists and students a way to sort and group organisms for
easier study.
* There are millions of organisms on the earth! (approximately 1.5 million
have been already named)

All living
things carry out the life functions. There are many different types
of organisms.

In one classification system, there are 2 main groups. In others, there
are 3. In the one used by most of the world's scientists, which we will
also use, there are 5 main groups. All living things are placed in one
of the five KINGDOMS...which are the most general group. They
are then broken down into smaller groups, then smaller groups, then
smaller and so on until there is just one... SPECIES is the most
specific group...

K
P C O F G S

Can
you make a sentence using the first letter of each classification subgroup?

* TAXONOMY--the
branch of science that classifies and names living things.

* NOMENCLATURE--a
system for naming things

In
biology there is a two-word system that is used to name organisms. It
is calledBINOMIAL NOMENCLATURE (a two named--naming system).

Carolus
Linnaeus devised this in the 1800's using these two subgroups for
the name:

GENUS & SPECIES
(more general) (more specific)

* Humans
are known as Homo sapiens

The
Five Kingdoms

MONERA
PROTISTA
FUNGI
PLANT
ANIMAL

M
P F P A

Can
you make a sentence using the first letter of each kingdom?

Organisms
are groups among these five kingdoms by:
* the presence or absence of a nuclear membrane
* unicellular (one cell) or multicellular (many cells)
* the type of nutrition used by the organism (heterotrophic or autotrophic)

We will
also go into the main phyla (next subgroup) for each kingdom.

I. Kingdom MONERA--
* have a primitive cell structure lacking a nuclear membrane--PROKARYOTE
* most of this kingdom are unicellular (some exist in multicellular
clusters)
* two main phyla

A) Bacteria (heterotrophic)
B) Blue-green algae (autotrophic)

II.
Kingdom PROTISTA--
* has a membrane around the nucleus of the cell--EUKARYOTIC
* predominantly unicellular
* two main phyla

A) Protozoa--animal
like nutrition (heterotrophic)

ex. paramecia,
ameba

B) Algae--plant like nutrition (autotrophic)

ex. spirogyra

III. Kingdom FUNGI--
* has a membrane around the nucleus of the cell--EUKARYOTIC
* absorbs food from its environment (heterotrophic), does NOT ingest
it!
* organized into branched, multinucleated filaments